This invention relates to a medical apparatus, and more particularly to an apparatus for endotracheally administering a fluid to a patient, and a method for assembling such an apparatus.
It has been found that an effective method of delivering a drug, such as epinephrine, to the heart of a pulseless patient is to administer the drug at a point deep within a lung of the patient, and to thereafter perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Several studies have indicated that this method of drug delivery shortens circulation time of the drug and increases chances of patient survival.
In reviving a pulseless patient, time is of the essence. While currently available evidence points to advantages offered by deep drug administration, there is no commercially available apparatus for quickly facilitating deep drug administration.
A commercially available system produced by Abbot Laboratories under the Trademark ABBOJECT.RTM. provides a preloaded container of medication adapted for intravenous use with a specially-made syringe. To use this system for endotracheal administration, the components must be unpackaged and the container loaded onto the syringe. Next, a three-way stopcock or other fitting must be applied, and a feeding tube or a vascular catheter must be adapted to the system. The medication can then be injected through the catheter.
This procedure involves numerous steps and, accordingly, a certain amount of time. This invention addresses this situation, and is intended to reduce the valuable time which lapses before the drug reaches the patient's heart.
In accordance with the invention, an apparatus for deep administration of a fluid, such as epinephrine or other such drug, comprises a body including a cavity adapted to receive a quantity of fluid. A discharge opening is in communication with the cavity for discharging fluid therefrom. A predetermined quantity of fluid is placed within the cavity. User-actuated means is associated with the body for ejecting the fluid from the body cavity through the discharge opening. A flexible catheter having a passage therethrough, and having a proximal end and a distal end, is adapted for connection to the body such that the proximal end of the catheter is in communication with the cavity discharge opening. In this manner, when the user-actuated means is actuated for ejecting fluid from the cavity through the discharge opening, the fluid is received within and passes through the catheter passage. The distal end of the catheter includes an outlet for discharging the fluid from the catheter at a point substantially removed from the cavity discharge opening. The catheter is adapted for endotracheal placement within a patient, such that the outlet formed in the distal end of the catheter discharges the fluid at a point deep within the lung of the patient. In a preferred embodiment, the body comprises a hollow barrel, and the user-actuated fluid ejecting means comprises a plunger movably mounted within the hollow barrel. A needle is preferably affixed to the end of the barrel, and includes a lumen which receives fluid ejected through the discharge opening. The tip of the needle is adapted for placement within the proximal end of the catheter, and sealing means is provided for enclosing the tip of the needle and sealing the proximal end of the catheter. The sealing means is preferably a stopper or the like for placement into the catheter passage at its proximal end, with a needle-receiving passage formed in the stopper. The apparatus is preferably movable between a storage position and an operative position. In the storage position, the end of the needle is received within the passage formed in the stopper, such that the tip of the needle is isolated and is not in communication with the catheter passage. In its operative position, the tip of the needle is forced through the stopper so that the needle tip is in communication with the catheter passage. In this position, the fluid can then be ejected from the barrel and through the needle into the catheter passage for ultimate discharge through the distal end of the catheter. Alternatively, the needle can be withdrawn from the stopper and used in its normal fashion for directly injecting the fluid into the patient. For example, under less critical circumstances, a routine subcutaneous or intravenous injection could be performed to administer the drug. In a serious situation, the needle could be withdrawn from the stopper and the drug directly injected into the heart if necessary.
The invention also contemplates a method of assembling a prepackaged medical apparatus, substantially in accordance with the foregoing summary.